All An Accident
by NIGHTMARYS
Summary: Ellie just thought it was another normal day, but after a stray cat knocks her into a puddle of mysterious green ooze, her life is changed forever. And now, the hunter will become the hunted. She must learn to live like they do, in the shadows and hiding from humans, because she no longer is one. She's a mutant, and it is up to them to protect her. Not just from evil, from herself.
1. Chapter 1

_**A/N: This is my very first TMNT story, so go easy on me! No flames, plzzz! I think I did alright for my first one.**_

_**DISCLAIMER: I don't own TMNT, but I seriously wish I did! **_

* * *

_I thought it was just gonna be a normal day. A normal, ordinary day of high school. But on the way home... Something terrible happened. Something that would change my life... forever. _

Ellie always dreaded the long walk back from school. New York City was a big place, and was the city that never sleeps. And sometimes that city really needed a darn nap.

Ellie continued her way down the sidewalk and rubbed her sore cheek. A nice purple bruise had been left there for another reminder of school. She was the girl that always got beat up. She tries to defend herself but it never works out. They always over power her.

She let out a long sigh and just spoke to herself. "Stupid Ellie. Why can't you learn to fight?" She cursed herself and felt a tear slide down her cheek. This happened all the time, and it was nothing new to her. But it still hurt.

Ellie turned a corner down a dark alleyway and was about to make another turn when she heard a small and soft meowing sound.

"Hello...?" She asked, turning towards the noise. It was a kitten, for sure. And she definitely knew after she saw a little white furry tailed kitten jump on the dumpster and look at her with bright blue eyes.

"Aww... Are you lost, little one?" She said, reaching out. The kitten licked her finger gently. She just let out a soft giggle and picked it up. The kitten purred and perched itself on her shoulder, wrapping its fluffy tail around her neck. She giggled again as it ran its tail over her bruised cheek. It seemed to soothe it a little.

"You're name's... Florence." She read the tags around her neck and felt her rub against the back of her neck. Ellie was about to walk off with the little kitten when she saw something else... It was a faint glow in the dumpster.

"What, in the world..." Ellie kneeled down and pushed some moldy newspapers out of the way and found a small tub of glowing green goop.

"What is that?" She said. The kitten on her shoulder suddenly let out a hiss and jumped off Ellie's shoulder, knocking her forward.

"Ahh!" She screamed and her hand slipped causing her other hand to land in the substance. She was about to make a comment on the grossness when she felt something happen.

Her hand began to feel numb. And then it started to hurt. Then it was a completely unbearable pain.

Ellie tried to keep her voice down but it was impossible. She fell out of the dumpster and held her hand that was starting to throb. And then she saw her nails start to get long a pointy. Like claws. And hair began to grow from her skin... Everywhere!

Her ears slowly started to disappear and her limbs started twisting terribly. She screamed at the top of her lungs as she felt something grow from the top of her head. Now protruding from her head sat a pair of black fluffy ears to match her black hair that began to grow all over her body. Her clothes started to rip and tear as they fell to the ground and her shoes started to rip as well. Something else started to grow from the base of her back and she let out another blood curdling scream.

Her toenails grew in same length as her fingernails, becoming another set of claws. Now she was covered in fur and her human ears had been replaced with cat ears. And she had a big and fluffy cat tail.

Her eyes began to throb as they changed as well. The once brown eyes became a piercing blue... And her pupils became like slits.

A set of whiskers sprouted from the bridge of her nose that had now turned a triangle shape and was pink.

All she knew was that she was in pain. And it was a horrible pain.

Ellie let out one final scream before she collapsed on the cold floor.

It would only be nightfall until someone found her.

~Nightfall~

It was just a regular night patrol, and even Michaelangelo seemed bored out of his mind. Leonardo and Donatello knew why they had to do night patrol but Michaelangelo and Raphael were less than interested.

"You really think we're gonna find something tonight? Like every other night?" Raphael said to Leonardo who sighed.

"I'm hoping we don't find anything. Means that its one less night the city is in danger."

"The city hasn't been in danger for weeks."

"Which means we're doing our job."

"Which means these patrols are pointless!"

"Knock it off!" Donatello finally put the argument to rest. "Why don't you yell a little louder, Raph? I don't think the humans on the ground floor could hear you!" He said in a harsh whispering tone.

"Uh, guys..." Michaelangelo started, trying to get their attention.

"Me be loud? Talk to Leo!" Raphael snapped at him.

"Me?" Leonardo said, flabbergasted. "You're the one always calling attention to us!"

"Guys..." Michaelangelo tried again.

"If you two would focus more on fighting the enemy and less on fighting each other, maybe we wouldn't get our shells kicked all the time!" Donatello yelled at the both of them.

"Guys!" Michaelangelo shouted loudly.

"_What?!" _They all yelled at the same time.

"Look." He just pointed down to the poorly lit alley and they all saw something that made them stare.

"Is that...?" Leonardo started.

"I don't think so." Donatello said.

Michaelangelo, being impulsive, decided to jump into action. "Let's go check it out!"

"Mikey, wait!" Donatello shouted and they all jumped down after him. They started to walk to the mess of black on the ground and soon saw that whatever it was, it was alive.

It had the body of a human girl but covered in fur and had resemblances of a cat. Like the fluffy ears on its head that started to twitch and the tail that rose and fell absentmindedly.

"Hello?" Leonardo kneeled down and tried to shake the thing awake. It rolled onto its back and they all let out a gasp.

Instead of just fur, the eyes were covered by long bangs that swayed to the side. It had long eyelashes and white whiskers on its face. By its body's form, it was definitely a girl.

"A human cat?" Michaelangelo said, looking at the others.

"No... It's a mutant." Raphael said, reaching out and touching her soft fur.

"How'd you know?" Michaelangelo said. Donatello rubbed his head with a hint of anger.

"Mikey... How many human cats do you ever see? Especially ones laying right next to Mutagen?!" He snapped and pointed into the dumpster where there was a glowing green blob of Mutagen.

Raphael looked at it and saw a handprint in the middle of it. "She must've touched it."

"Maybe we should take her back with us?" Michaelangelo suggested.

"And risk all of our lives? Forget it!" Raphael snapped. The two began a yelling match and Leonardo lifted the girl into his arms and felt her own arm slip onto the concrete with her palm facing up. Donatello looked down at her hand and gasped.

"Guys... I don't think she's a threat." He grabbed her arm slowly and inspected it.

"What gives you that idea?" Michaelangelo asked, running up to him. And then let out his own gasp of horror. "What is it?" Raphael stood behind the two of them and stared as well.

"What?" Leonardo demanded, looking at them as they stared at her wrist. Donatello simply turned her arm over and exposed the only places not covered in fur. Small slash marks on her arm. Or scars.

"Not all the enemy will try and kill themselves." And then they looked at what was left of her clothes. Poking out of the front pocket in her jeans was a small blade. A razor blade.


	2. Chapter 2

_**DISCLAIMER: I don't own TMNT, but I seriously wish I did! **_

* * *

Ellie's first feeling was pain. Unbearable and crippling pain. But she also felt cold. Not outside, but inside.

She tried to sit up but her head kept telling her to stay down. That's when she heard voices.

"Why would something so beautiful be so sad?" She heard a voice in her ears. It was a soft voice, like a brother that would tell you everything was gonna be okay. But deep inside, Ellie knew it wouldn't be okay. Ever.

"Maybe there's a logical explanation?" Another voice said.

"Yeah. A logical explanation for scars on her wrist that are all going the same way and were made with a blade that fell from her pocket!" Another one shouted. That's when her body reacted.

She let out a loud scream and covered her hands with her head. And when she touched it, she felt soft fur.

"Guys... I think you woke her up." Someone said. Ellie started to sit up and she groaned a little, rubbing the back of her neck that was also covered in fur. She let out another groan and rose to her feet, and finally opened her eyes. But when she did, her focus was everywhere.

And before she knew what she did, Ellie let out a loud hiss and got down on all fours, backing into a dark corner. And when she looked at the people in front of her, she nearly screamed again.

"It's okay... We don't want to hurt you." They were turtles! Teenage talking turtles!

"Turtles... What?!" She shouted and stood up, blinking a few times. Her vision suddenly changed back to normal and she stepped out of the light. She wasn't any taller than the turtles in front of her. They all had weapons and wore masks.

Red, blue, orange, and purple. "What in the name of the Lord is going on here?" She demanded from them.

"Whoa! Calm down..." The one in blue said. "Calm down? _Calm down?!" _

"You've done it now, Leo." The one in red remarked.

"You try waking up in an alley surrounded by talking turtles! With weapons!" She added on and ran her hands through her bangs and then let out a squeak. "Ow!"

She looked down at her hands and saw long claws and black fur. She screamed again and fell over, looking at her hands and then her body. She brought her hands up to her face and felt more fur and whiskers. She reached up and felt the fluffy ears on her head and then looked down at her behind and saw the tail.

Ellie ran up to a window and looked at it... She was... gone! What was once Ellie was replaced with a cat... A cat mutant!

"This isn't happening.. It's just a dream..." She said over and over again as her heart pounded in her chest.

"I'm... I'm..." She stuttered. The turtle in orange spoke up. "A cat!" He said with a smile. She let out a scream and started to pull on her tail and ears.

"It's not real. It isn't! Get off of me! I am NOT a cat!" She said, pulling on her ears and tail even more violently.

"Hey, stop!" The one in blue said. He ran up to her and grabbed her hands, making her look at him. She panted and stared into his eyes.

"Look... Whatever happened to you, whatever you're afraid of... It isn't that bad. You're a mutant. Like us."

Ellie stared at the four of them while the one in orange waved at her. The others were smiling at her. She gave them all an odd look.

"Well, how is this even possible?" She said, staring at him. He answered simply. "Mutagen."

"Mutagen?" She said with a chuckle. He sighed. "The stuff you touched in the dumpster." And then they all heard a meow. Ellie looked up and stared at the white cat from earlier.

"Aw, its a kitten!" The one in orange remarked. "That's the little furball that pushed me into that stuff!" Ellie shouted, directing her finger at her. The kitten hissed and ran off again. Ellie let out a frustrated sigh and walked over to her clothes. She then gasped as she saw the razor lying in plain sight.

She looked at the razor and then at the Turtles. The one in purple kneeled down and put his large hand on her shoulder. "We know." Was all he said.

Tears began to fall from her new blue eyes and she picked up the blade, looking at it in the light. And then down at her scarred wrist. The only places not covered in fur were the long scars that ran across her wrist. She looked at the razor again before chucking it into the darkness with an angry grunt and falling back down on her knees, sighing.

"What's your name?" He spoke again. "Elliot... But my mom always calls me Ellie." She said with a small smile.

"I'm Donatello. But call me Donnie." He said. She gave him a small smile and he returned it. She now noticed the gap in between his teeth and thought it was a little cute.

"So... What do I do now? I can't exactly go home, my parents would freak." She said to them. Just then, the orange one jumped forward. "She can come with us!"

"Ellie... This is Michaelangelo. Call him Mikey though." Donnie said, gesturing towards him without making eye contact.

"Hi! Wow, this is so cool! A cat girl. Like in the comic books!" He said out loud. Ellie's face turned sour.

"You actually read that sort of DC garbage?" She said, smiling a little. "Garbage? Catwoman serves a great purpose. She's Batman's nemesis." He said. The red turtle facepalmed and stared at him. "And I thought Donnie was the dork."

"That's Raphael." Donnie told her. Raphael kneeled down in front of her. "Good that your alive, kitty." He said. Ellie let out a growl like a cat's and Raphael backed away from her. The one in blue started to laugh.

"And that's-" He cut Donnie off.

"I'm Leonardo. At your service." He bowed and then gave her a smirk, making her laugh.

"Okay, Leo-nerdo." All the others started to laugh at her joke and he made a face at them all. "Sure, laugh at me for being a gentleman. I see how it is around here." Ellie gave a small laugh and stood up.

She looked down at her backpack and then picked it up, tossing it into the dumpsters. "Looks like I'm a high school dropout." She sighed. She felt someone place a hand on her shoulder and turned to look at Mikey.

"Hey... It's okay. We'll protect you." He promised. She smiled a little and then they all left the alley. Ellie watched them jump onto the roof and glared. "C'mon! Get up here!" Raphael said.

"How?" Ellie was confused. How would she get up there with no skills whatsoever?

"You're a cat, aren't you?" He said, smirking. Ellie rubbed her hands together and looked down at herself with a small smile. "Yeah..."

"Well, then jump!"

Ellie felt her tail swish back and forth in the air and she made a big leap for the ceiling with a small growl and cleared the entire building in one jump. It was then that she realized she had no idea how to land. Serenity ended up falling on top of Donnie, knocking him to the concrete ground.

"Ow!" He said dramatically. Ellie sat up and rubbed her sore head.

"I guess... I need to work on my landings." She said sheepishly and got off of him on all fours and stood up straight.

"You know, you don't look that bad." Leo said with a smirk.

"I think its hot." Mikey smirked and wrapped his arm around Ellie's shoulder. If they knew, she was blushing under her fur.

"If I must say, you got lucky. It could have been a lot worse. Could have turned into a dumpster." Raphael remarked and made Ellie laugh before looking down at herself and twirling a little while her new tail wrapped around her thigh. She grabbed the tail gently and ran her fingers through the soft and long fur.

"I must say, I do feel different..." Ellie said, looking at the four. Leo laughed. "What? Have a craving for fish?"

"Yes, actually. And I hate fish." She stuck her tongue out and started to walk the rest of the way down the rooftops but then stopped.

Ellie turned slightly to the right and spotted a finch perched on the ledge. It began to tweet and jump up and down, making Ellie narrow her eyes. She let out a faint growl and got down on all fours, crawling across the concrete roof slowly.

"What's she doing?" Mikey said, looking at the others. Donnie smirked. "Hunting."

Ellie's ears flattened against her head and her pupils slit and her focus started to twist and turn, watching the finch's every move. It tweeted again and turned to look at her and Ellie jumped into the darkness swiftly, her tail swishing in the air.

"Whoa..." They all stared as she placed her hand on the ground and then pounced, jumping on the ledge and hissed as the bird tried to fly away but Ellie got the upper hand and used her new fangs to bite down on its feathery tail and pulling it down.

"Ellie!" She heard one of their voices and finally snapped out of it, letting the finch go. It started to fly off and tweeted angrily before fluttering away. Ellie panted and got down on her knees.

"What happened?" She looked up at Leo and just put the heel of her hand to her forehead.

"I... I don't know. I just... I changed." She said and sighed deeply.

"C'mon. Let's get her home." Donnie came up next to Ellie and helped her up. She rubbed her forehead and ran with them over buildings, following them to an alley.

She looked down as they all surrounded a manhole. She looked down and frowned.

"We're going through here?"

"Yep." Donnie smirked and pulled the plating away before jumping into the manhole. The others started to follow but Mikey stayed up and waited. "After you." He said with a smirk. She rolled her eyes and jumped through the hole.

Her feet touched the ground and she groaned. "Oh... Yuck!" She cringed as the stench of the sewers overpowered her.

Ellie made a disgusted face as she jumped onto the concrete and shivered. "You live down here?" She questioned. They all gave her a look.

"For 15 years." Donnie said with a smile. She just rolled her eyes.

"Guys... Have you thought what exactly we're walking into? What's Master Splinter going to say?!" Raphael said, making them all stop.

"Oh crud! You're right!" Donnie smacked his hand against his forehead as sudden realization hit him. Ellie was concerned. Were they going to make her go back up? Would she be in trouble with this Master Splinter? Would they get mad at her?

"Ellie... Now you just need to understand what's gonna happen..." Leo approached her carefully.

"What's gonna happen?" She said, looking at the others as they all got closer to her.

"What's waiting for you in there is... not what a cat should go through. You just need to handle this... delicately. And whatever that was that happened on the roof with the bird... Try not to let it happen again." He told her, breathing deeply.

She nodded carefully as they lead her down the sewers again. Ellie let out little breaths as she started to get uneasy.

"Guys... Where are we headed?" She asked carefully. "Trust us." Mikey smirked and she gave him a fake smile before now having second thoughts on following talking turtles into the sewers.

That was, until she saw where they were. "Whoa..."

"Welcome to our home, Ellie."


	3. Chapter 3

_**DISCLAIMER: I don't own TMNT, but I seriously wish I did! **_

* * *

Ellie stared in amazement at the place around her. It was like a training ground! The ones she's seen only in movies! It was so amazing to her.

Ellie looked at the weapons on the walls and the small space that looked like a living room. Her heart pounded in her chest as she heard the ticking of machines in another room and looked to see a faint glow coming from the doorway. But her focus was on the weapons.

Ellie ran up to the walls. "This is so cool!" She said, picking up one of the Katana's and running her claw down the blade. "Incredible..." She began to twirl the Katana slowly in her hands and then decided to put it down before she did any damage.

Ellie turned to look at the turtles and they were all smiling at her. She giggled nervously and grabbed her tail nervously.

"Someone's into sharp objects." Leo said, crossing his arms and smirking.

"Well, can you blame me? I mean, this is the most awesome thing, ever!" She grinned and breathed in deeply before running a hand through her bangs, flipping them to the side.

"Sorry. I'm kind of fangirling over here." She said rubbing the back of her neck awkwardly. They all started to laugh.

Ellie held her hands in front of her and pushed her shoulders forward, looking down at her feet awkwardly. And then something began to enter her nostrils.

Ellie sniffed the air before hissing and getting down on all fours with a scared expression.

"Tell me why I smell a rat..?" She said, looking up at them. They stared at her and then Ellie looked up and saw a giant rat man wearing red robes. She let out a scream and the man looked at her and let out a shout of fear too.

Ellie crawled away from the rat man and started to shake as she hid behind the turtles. They looked at her with a shocked expression.

"You're afraid of rats?" Mikey started to laugh. Ellie hissed at him and continued to back away.

"You brought a cat into the lair?!" Whoever the rat man was, he wasn't happy with what they did.

"No! She's a mutant," Donnie said. "A mutant cat!" The rat man snapped.

Ellie continued to shake on the floor and covered her head. "Just a dream... There's no rat man... You're okay, Ellie..." Ellie bit her lip and quivered in fear as she continued to cover her head, her ears flattening as her tail curled up around her body.

"She's scared of Sensei?" Leo said, kneeling down and putting his hand on her shoulder. She looked up from the floor and at Leo. And without thinking, she jumped on him and started to hug him, whimpering and shivering.

Her heart and breathing started to slow down but she was still curled against Leo's plastron with her eyes closed.

"It's okay, Ellie..." He said in the softest way he could, running his hand down her fur slowly. Ellie slowly opened her eyes and looked up at Leo with a sheepish smile. "S-S-Sorry..." She said nervously.

"It's okay..." He said with a goofy smile. Everyone smirked and then they were all snapped back into reality.

"Boys!" They all looked over at the one that they called Master Splinter glared at them all. Ellie stood up and started to shake again. "I would like to speak with you all," He looked at Ellie.

"Alone," Her fear racked inside her brain as she started to back away and into a room where she sat down on the floor and brought her knees to her chest. She heard shouting in the other room and it was because of her. Tears slid from her eyes and down her furry cheeks as she tried to block it out.

"Wherever you found that girl, you take her back!" Master Splinter's voice racked through the lair.

"But Sensei, she's not a danger to any of us!" It must have been Leo.

"Yeah, she's just a teenager!" It was Donnie this time. Serenity was gasping for air as she felt her ears flatten against her head and her tail curl around her feet.

"I do not care what she is, or who she is. She is a danger to all of us as long as she is around." And then a very loud shout was heard, and it was from Mikey.

"_She's suicidal!_" Everyone stopped and Ellie's ears perked up as she looked around the corner at the four and their master. "What?" Splinter was more than confused.

"She has scars on her wrist and there was a razor blade in her pocket! If we hadn't have found her when we did, she could have killed herself because of what happened!" Mikey said. Everyone stared at him. Why, and how did he say things like that? He doesn't say things like that ever!

"For once, Mikey's right. Who knows what could have happened to Ellie? Sensei, we have to protect her. If not from anyone else, but from herself. I don't want something to happen to an innocent girl and look back, knowing we didn't even try." Leo said, looking at everyone else.

"You should have seen her when we found her, Sensei... She was scared of us. Of herself... Of you. I can't believe she even made it down here." Donnie said.

Ellie crawled on her knees to the doorway and placed her hand on it, hearing her claws make a soft clinking sound as she did. Master Splinter seemed to be in distress.

"I suppose she is no threat. But one of you must take on the responsibility of watching after her."

"I'll do it." Leo said, raising his hand. "I put up with Mikey. How much trouble can Ellie be?" Ellie started to smile and looked at him sincerely. They all really wanted to help her.

"Very well," Master Splinter looked at Ellie and she gasped before hiding behind the wall and running her fingers nervously through her bangs. "Take good care of her, Leonardo." And it seemed like he left. Ellie sighed and just sat there with her legs folded as she stared down at the floor. A few seconds went by before she heard someone speak up.

"Ellie?" She looked up at Leo who gave her a little smile. She didn't smile back.

"What's wrong?" He asked her. She sighed.

"I know not everyone could appreciate living like this. Free, like you and the others. But I don't know if I'm cut out for this... I mean, I'm sure my parents will hardly miss me, but... What can I do? I gave up school. If I'm not... Ellie anymore... Than who am I?" She gave sad sigh and looked down at the floor, folding her hands in her lap.

Leo placed his hand on her shoulder. "You're more than that... You're one of us now. And to be honest, its not such a bad life... If you can keep up with us ninjas." He smirked and she giggled.

"Ninjas? So that's what the Katanas are for?" She said, pointing to the weapons on his back.

"You got it!" He stood up and held out his hand for her to take it. She wrapped her hand in his.

"C'mon, you must be tired."

"Despite being unconscious for hours, I'm totally exhausted."


	4. Chapter 4

_**DISCLAIMER: I don't own TMNT, but I seriously wish I did! **_

* * *

"Leo, I'm taking the floor. Like it or not,"

"You are not! You're the guest and I won't have you sleeping on the smelly sewer floor,"

"Dude, give it up and give me the darn pillow."

Ellie snatched the pillow and blanket from Leo's hands and smirked before walking to the other side of the room. She simply laid the blanket down and threw down the pillow as well before sitting down on it. Leo gave her an angry look.

"Fine. But don't come to me when your back hurts." He said, falling over on his bed and crossing his arms angrily, staring at the ceiling.

Ellie giggled. "Don't worry," She said as she laid her head on the pillow. "I won't."

~Midnight~

Ellie tossed and turned on her little bed on the floor and was whimpering pitifully, but still sleeping. Her nightmares had not yet left her. Several minutes went by like this before Ellie sat up and gasped for air, reaching for her neck.

She felt her soft fur and then looked over to a sleeping Leo and then to the rest of the darkness around her.

"Relax, Ellie... Just a dream." She said and laid back down, rubbing her neck. But when she closed her eyes again, she saw the nightmares. She gulped and stood up, walking slowly over to Leo's bed.

A nervous feeling started to settle in underneath her fur as she slowly crawled into his bed and smoothly slithered under the gap in between his arm and his plastron. Ellie then felt safe.

And when she closed her eyes, the nightmares were nowhere to be found. Soon, she fell asleep to the sound of Leo's rhythmic breathing.

Little did Ellie know that when she fell back asleep, her tail had wound its way around Leo's leg and she woke him up by pulling on it without knowing she did. He opened his eyes and found a sleeping Ellie in his arms.

He nearly shouted when he saw how scared she looked. There was still a faint blush on his face but he smiled and rubbed her back soothingly.

"Sleep well, Ellie..." And he tried his best to go back to sleep with her wrapped in his arms.

~The Next Morning~

"You think we should wake them up?"

"Nah, I'd let them sleep. It's kinda cute anyways."

"More than cute, its adorable!"

Mikey, Raph, and Donnie looked down at the two and smiled wide. Leo had both of his arms wrapped around Ellie protectively as she had her legs tangled in his own, her head almost touching his plastron as the back of her hand did touch it. Her ears were folded back against her head as Leo's head was right above her head and every time he breathed, it ruffled her fur. And her tail was wrapped securely around his upper left thigh.

And not only that... Ellie was _purring! _

"We should wake them up sometime. They're gonna sleep past noon if we don't." Raph said, crossing his arms.

"Fine. You wake them up." Donnie smirked, crossing his own arms.

"Me? Why me?"

"You want them up so badly,"

Raph gave an angry growl before sighing in defeat. Before he could even touch them though, they all heard a familiar voice.

"Hey guys!" They turned around to meet a human red headed girl with a smile. "April! Hi!" Raph jumped into action and smiled. "Boy, am I glad to see you..."

"Why?" She said, looking back at the doorway. "And where's Leo?" She added on.

"Snuggled up with a new pet." Mikey smirked and then Donnie smacked him.

"She's not a pet!"

"Sure looks like it."

"What are you talking about?" April walked towards the doorway and saw what Mikey meant. She continued to gawk at the scene in front of her and looked at Donnie.

"What is that?"

"A mutant. Her name's Ellie, and she was pushed into a puddle of Mutagen by a stray cat." He explained to her. She nodded and looked back down before carefully touching Ellie's fur.

"Wow... She's soft." April said with a small smile. "I'm sure Leo thinks so too."

Donnie rolled his eyes at Raph's comment and then saw one of Ellie's ears start to poke up. She finally started to stir in Leo's arms and opened her big and blue eyes before locking them onto Leo's plastron. She nearly screamed but covered her mouth.

"Holy Mackenzie..." She muttered and looked up at Leo's sleeping face. He began to stir as well and blinked his eyes open, looking down at Ellie. That's when everything snapped.

Leo screamed and it made Ellie's eyes turn to slits as she jumped away from him and ran into the corner. Not the bottom corner- the corner of the ceiling!

Everyone stared at her as she shook in the dark corner. And then snapped back into reality.

"Whoa... Uh, guys?" She said, keeping her claws deep in the wall to avoid falling.

"How did you do that?" Raph asked her. She gulped. "I. Don't. Know."

Leo got up out of bed and continued to stare at the dark furry thing in the corner as it shook in fear.

"Donnie, how do I get down?" She asked him, staring at him through the darkness.

"The same way you got up."

"I don't know how I got up!" She shouted and then felt something pull on her tail. Ellie hissed and pulled her tail up with her, looking down at Mikey.

"Mikey!" Leo shouted. "Not helping,"

Ellie let out a groan and just glared at them all. And then she saw Raph step forward.

"Hey, it's nothing to worry about. Just jump down. Cats always land on their feet, right?" He said, looking at Donnie to back him up on it.

"Not really... Well, not Ellie, anyway." He said, shrugging.

"Oh perfect... After this, someone's getting ice for me!" Ellie shouted and kicked herself off the wall and ceiling, darting forward. And she smashed her head right against Leo's, making him fall over and her fall on top of him.

Ellie groaned and pushed herself to sit upright and rubbed her sore skull.

"Stupid cat like abilities." She snapped and looked down at Leo.

"You alright?" She asked, standing up and holding out her hand for him to take it. He did gratefully.

"Yeah, no permanent damage. I'll be fine." He said as if it was nothing. Ellie smirked and saw something.

"And... that?" She put her fingers on the new bruise her head had left on his. "Ah!" He flinched when she touched it and all she did was chuckle as his face got red.

"Okay, so one bruise. Big deal." He said it like it was nothing. Ellie rolled her eyes and started to walk away when she came face to face with April, who was staring at her.

"Whoa..." She said, looking over her. Ellie felt a little nervous as she looked her up and down. April was just continuing to stare at her as she reached out and brushed her hands against her ears. And when she did, Ellie unknowingly folded her ears back.

"Wow... Haven't meant many female mutants. And none as pretty as you." April said, shrugging her shoulders. Ellie's pupils got big and she looked even more adorable as her tail swished back and forth.

"You think so?" Ellie twirled a little and accidentally wrapped her tail around April's wrist. She gave a nervous giggle and April just laughed as she held up her wrist wrapped in Ellie's fluffy black tail.

The four turtles watched the two girls giggle as Ellie unwrapped her tail from April's wrist. She seemed so calm and passive around April. Maybe because it was easier to relate to April, due that she was human only about 24 hours ago.

April reached out to Ellie but pulled her hand back. "C-Can I?"

"Of course," Ellie said, giving her a smile that exposed her fangs. April gave a smile back to her and reached for her hand before turning it over several times and looking at her claws

"Whoa, that's sharp." She said, poking the tip of one and smiled up at her. Ellie smiled back innocently as she blinked a few times.

April ran her hands up Ellie's arm and then went behind her, running her hand down her back and then grabbed her tail gently. It twitched in her hand a little and April couldn't help but giggle.

She looked down at her sharp toenails and went around in front of her again before looking at her face a little. April reached out and gently touched her whiskers.

"Can you feel that?"

"A little." Ellie started to giggle and then rubbed her wrist against the base of her whiskers to take care of the little itch. April just continued to stare at her as she blinked and gave her a smile.

The turtles still stared at their interaction.

"Is this what girl time is?" Raph said, looking at Donnie for an answer.

"Seems like it." He said, shrugging his shoulders and watching more as the two girls continued to giggle as April messed with her ears.

"Can't blame her any," Leo said, referring to April. "Her fur is real soft." He then realized what he said and his face turned a shade of pink. They all just started laughing at him.

"Okay, ow..." Ellie finally pulled her ears free from April's hands and rubbed them as she had gripped them a little too hard.

"Oh! I'm sorry." April apologized quickly, biting her lip.

"It's alright. I've had a lot worse." She rubbed her sore ear gently and then looked at the turtles with a smile.

"We doing anything today?"

"Yeah, actually." Leo said, jumping forward. "You're a different person now. We gotta see what you can do." Ellie started to feel nervous.

"Wait... How can we see what I can do when I don't even know what to do?" She said, shrugging her shoulders.

"Simple," Donnie said. "Let your feline side take over. You did it last night." Memories came back to her of when she attacked that poor little finch. She gulped and ran her claws through her bangs and felt her ears flatten on her head.

"I don't know... What if I hurt someone?" She said, nervously.

"Hurt us?" Raph crossed his arms. "We're ninjas. You can't hurt us." And then Leo smacked him upside the head. "Ow!"

Ellie snickered a little but then sighed. "If you guys think this is a good idea..."

"I think it's a great idea." Donnie remarked. Everyone rolled their eyes.

"Donnie's dork side is gonna take over. He'll be analyzing everything you do." Raph said, crossing his arms.

"C'mon Ellie," Leo said, walking out the door. "Let's get started."

~10 Minutes Later~

Ellie stood in the middle of the room awkwardly as Master Splinter stood on the sidelines. They all waited patiently as she stood in front of them just looking at the ceiling where a rope hung. She sighed.

"Now how is this supposed to help?" She asked.

"One thing you must learn, is how to adapt." Master Splinter told her. She gave him a weird look.

"But I don't know how climbing a freaking rope is going to change anything!"

"Ellie," Donnie said, making her look at him. "You need to think like a cat." She gave him another weird look before looking at the others who were all smirking and waiting, but April was just staring, waiting for her to make a move.

"Okay..." Ellie got down on the ground on all fours and began to close her eyes. She tried to channel her instincts and access the part of her that was now a feline. She breathed heavily and kept her eyes firmly shut as she felt something start to pull her in... It was calling her... Speaking to her...

Her ears began to twitch and her tail started swishing back and forth wildly as she jumped into her cat-like instincts. She opened her eyes and her pupils turned to slits and she exposed her sharp teeth and looked at the ceiling where the rope hung.

In one swift motion, she had pounced and grabbed the rope with one hand and swung herself up with the other. Her claws dug into the rope as she began to climb it at lightning speed. She touched the ceiling and hooked her claws into it before launching herself to the wall and off the rope. Her claws kept her in place as her tail twitched wildly.

She began to run across the walls by latching and unlatching her claws and growling a little as she ran around the room entirely on the walls. She looked back at the rope and kicked herself off the wall and made a giant leap towards the rope, wrapping her hand around it and giving a hiss as she swung from the rope with one hand wrapped around it thoroughly.

Ellie let out another hiss as she let go of the rope and fell down to the ground, giving a small flip in the air as she landed on the ground with one leg bent in and the other extended out, one hand landing firmly on the ground as the other stretched out with her leg, her fingers curling in a little and her face making an angered look. Her chest heaved with every breath as she blinked a few times.

And her human like instincts finally returned and her eyes became normal again. She blinked a few times and looked at everyone who was staring at her with a shocked expression. Even Donnie was staring with his mouth open.

"Whoa..." Was all Ellie said with a smile on her face as she stood up straight and turned to look at Master Splinter. "How was that?"

"Very impressive, Ellie. You have precision and focus." He bowed his head in respect and she did the same.

"That was awesome!" Raph came up behind Ellie and put his hand on her shoulder. Her cat-like reflexes kicked in again as she grabbed his hand and dug her claws in before she lurched forward and twisted herself under his arm and in one swift movement, flipped him over her shoulder and onto his back. He gave a grunt of pain and looked up at her with a shocked expression.

Ellie gasped and covered her mouth before kneeling down. "Holy Mackenzie, are you okay?"

"Yeah... I'm good." He stood up and rubbed the back of his neck. Ellie smiled a little and was soon approached by everyone.

"That was so cool! You were so..." Mikey stopped mid sentence, trying to find the right words. Leo and Donnie finished together.

"Ninja." If she could, Ellie would have blushed. She bit her lip and just bowed her head.

"Thank you," She looked up at Master Splinter. "Thank you all."


	5. Chapter 5

_**DISCLAIMER: I don't own TMNT, but I seriously wish I did! **_

* * *

Hours went by, but for Ellie, it seemed like minutes. All she did for hours was discover what she was capable of. Everyone went off to do their own thing after an hour. Everyone but Leo. It was his job to look after her and he wanted to know everything that she could do.

Right now, he watched as Ellie gave a little grunt as she did a hand stand on both hands. Her wrist that was covered in scars began to throb as she started to walk on her hands slowly.

"Don't push it too hard, Ellie." Leo said, worried that she might topple over. She gulped and continued to walk on her hands but then her wrist gave way, making her fall forward and on her head.

She let out a small squeak and sat up, holding her aching wrist. He immediately slid across the floor on his knees and let out a sigh and grabbed her wrist gently.

"I told you not to push it." He scolded her. She flinched slightly and rubbed her wrist. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay... Just take it slow. You don't need to rush into everything."

Ellie sighed and nodded once before standing on her feet. Leo smiled and stepped back and went to the wall.

"Now why don't you try this," He held out a simple staff, like the one Donnie used. She grasped it in her hands and looked at him. "A stick?"

"A staff. Donnie doesn't like it when its called a stick." Ellie rolled her eyes and just looked at it.

"It's a stick."

Leo sighed and dropped his head before taking it from her. "Try and do what I do." He said, making her take a few steps back.

Leo began to simply twirl the staff, first starting slow and then speeding up before tossing the staff in the air. It continued to spin in the air and then it fell down. He caught it easily and took a stand point, almost battle ready.

Ellie smirked and crossed her arms. "That's cool."

"Now you," He handed it to her. She held it uneasily in her hands and looked at Leo, waiting for him to say something wrong. He just smiled encouragingly and crossed his arms, stepping back as she did.

Ellie rolled her eyes and began to twirl the staff, replacing one hand with the other at a slow pace, and then speeding up. Her focus began to take over and she almost saw it in slow motion. But really, her hands were moving lightning fast. Ellie let out a laugh before throwing the twirling staff into the air.

But it got away from her. It began to fly away from her and towards where Leo stood. He could only stare as the staff came zooming towards his head. But Ellie was faster.

She got down on all fours and began to race her way towards the staff, almost moving in slow motion. She ran just like a cat as she leaped forward and reached out her hand, flying through the air.

* * *

Leo closed his eyes as it got closer but the impact never came. He opened his eyes and looked at the staff. Ellie now held it right in front of his face, her back straight and standing on her feet as the muscles under her fur and in her arms tensed around the wood. She just gasped and dropped it.

"Whoa..."

"How did you do that?" He said, staring at her.

"I don't know... It was like everything was in slow motion! Like... I was in slow motion." She started getting a little dizzy and rubbed her temples, careful not to scratch herself.

"You feel light headed?" He asked her. She nodded and started to walk away but walked right into a wall. "Ow!" She snapped, pushing herself away from the wall and rubbing her nose.

"Maybe if you didn't walk with your eyes closed," Leo smirked.

"Oh, ha-ha." She said, walking away again, this time with her eyes open. Leo followed behind her and watched as she walked into Donnie's lab. She watched him typing away at his laptop, making her a little curious as to what he was doing.

"Hey, Donnie," He finally looked up from his laptop. "Ellie! Just in time." He smiled wide and walked towards her.

"In time for what?"

"I want to study you," He said simply like it was nothing. Ellie made a face.

"Oh... kay." She said awkwardly as she stepped inside more and Donnie gestured for her to sit down on the table. She did and began to fidget nervously.

"Relax, Ellie. Its nothing really serious." He said, reaching for her tail gently and then yanked a little fur from it. She squeaked.

"Ow!" She hissed in his face and he nearly screamed in fear when she just growled. "That... hurt."

"Sorry. Just needed a DNA sample." He said, putting the fur in a glass casing and then pulled out a needle. She nearly screamed.

"Keep that thing away from me!" She shouted before jumping up and standing on the table. Donnie groaned.

"You're afraid of a needle? You have razor sharp teeth and claws!"

"I don't care! I don't do needles!" She jumped from the table and ran away from his lab as fast as she could, Donnie screaming after her.

"Ellie, stop!" He said but she didn't. Ellie jumped to where Raph and Mikey were and in front of them both. "The last thing you are doing is sticking that thing into my veins!" She snarled and bared her teeth.

They all got scared. "Donnie," Mikey started. "I'd put that thing down..."

"Oh, come on, Ellie! It's just a little needle. It can't be that bad." He said, holding it up like it was nothing. April finally stepped forward.

"Tell you what, Ellie, would you feel better if I did it?" She offered. Ellie's snarl finally faded and she just blinked.

"Actually, yes. I want April to do it. Not the mad scientist."

"Mad scientist?!" Donnie exclaimed, with an angry face.

"Have you seen your lab?" Raph butted in, making everyone, including April, snicker. Donnie was fuming.

"Let me see that," April held out her hand and Donnie put the syringe in it. She walked towards Ellie who was scared but held out her arm.

"Breathe in," April told her. Ellie breathed in deeply and closed her eyes as April began to rub her fur gently and then she felt a small pinch but nothing else. "Breathe out."

Ellie looked down and saw that the needle was in her arm and she was removing a small amount of blood. Ellie smiled as it was pulled from her arm and April gently rubbed the wound.

"Wow... You're good."

"I know," April smirked and handed the syringe to Donnie who rolled his eyes with a smile and walked off with it. Ellie let out a long sigh and then sat down next to Raph who didn't even look at her. But she looked at him.

He finally looked at her. "What?"

She shrugged with a smile. "I don't know. I just know this is freaking you out." She smirked, poking him on his snout. He let out a small huff.

"Well, yeah, it's freaking me out!" He tried to back away from her but all she did was give a little laugh and continued to poke him over and over again, making his temper rise.

"Would you _stop that?!" _He shouted at her. Ellie frowned a little but then nodded sitting down and not looking at him, ashamed of herself. Her eyes started to get glassy as she pulled her knees to her chest and sighed. Raph suddenly felt guilty.

"What's wrong?" He said, looking at her with a serious expression. Ellie sighed again.

"It's just..." She paused and then saw that Mikey and April was looking at her too. She blinked once and then continued.

"I-I've never really had... friends... Before. I guess I just don't know how to act around them." Ellie sighed and pressed her head into her knees and felt her ears fall back in defeat.

"You've never had a friend before?" Mikey said, sitting next to her. She just nodded and held her tears in as she raised her head.

"I know you couldn't tell but yesterday, before my mutation... I was beat up at school. They left a nice bruise here," She pointed to the place on her cheek where the bruise used to be visible, but was now covered in fur.

"It was embarrassing. They took all of my things, my phone, my bracelet, my sketchbook... I tried to get it back without hurting them, I did. But they wanted a fight. I just couldn't defend myself so I got hurt instead. Everyone just... laughed at me!" She tried her best not to cry but it was too late.

Tears spilled from her eyes and down her furry cheeks as she covered them with her hands and curled up, trying to hide away her tears from them.

"Why didn't you tell anyone?" Raph said, kneeling down next to her. She just laughed and glared at him.

"Right, tell them that someone stole my stuff and expect them to help me? The whole world hates me! Even my parents!" Ellie sat up and gave him an angry look before exploding on him.

"They called me a mistake! They said I was nothing but trouble and should have been given to an orphanage the first chance they got! _They hate me!_" She shouted in his face. As she said that, it was like the air seemed to get thinner and there was a strong heat radiating off of Ellie, making them all back away slightly. Ellie sat down with an angry huff, blowing her bangs out of her face.

Raph, Mikey, and April was shocked. They didn't even say anything for a good minute. Ellie stood up and started to walk away. "I'm sorry." Was all she could say before she went looking for Leo.

They all exchanged looks before April spoke up. "That's horrible. It's one thing to be shunned by the people at school... But your own parents..." They all were depressed now.

Ellie had finally found Leo and he was in the lab with Donnie, watching him do... Whatever he was doing.

"Hey, Leo, Can I ask a favor...?" She said, crossing her arms behind her back and looking down nervously.

"That all depends on what you want." He said, smirking and crossing his arms.

She gulped and rubbed the back of her neck nervously. "I need some help getting back up to the streets... If I'm going to be living down here, there's some things I need." She said nervously, hoping he wouldn't say no.

"Sure, just direct me to your house." He started walking off with Ellie and Donnie spoke up.

"Leo, be careful!"

"When am I not?" Leo said, following Ellie out of the lab. Donnie groaned.

"I wonder if he really wanted me to answer that."


	6. Chapter 6

_**DISCLAIMER: I don't own TMNT, but I seriously wish I did! **_

* * *

From outside of the small house, Ellie looked into her bedroom window and saw that her night light was still on. All of her stuff, it was possible she was leaving behind everything she's ever known.

Ellie slowly slid the window open and jumped inside but then turned around and held out her hand to Leo, before he could come inside.

"Wait, stay out here." She warned him. "What? Why?"

"If my parents see you, they'll freak out!"

"And they won't when they see you?" He smirked. She just sighed and then opened the window all the way, telling him he could come inside. Ellie carefully opened her closet door and saw all of her stuff and reached down for a small duffel bag and began to gather the things she wanted to keep in her life, which mainly consisted of notebooks and other various things. But mostly things that she held close to her heart.

For example, a certain golden medallion, a black leather jacket, her hairbrush, and a small box from under her bed. She reached on the shelf above her bed and grabbed a certain book and looked at the cover, smiling a little.

"What is it?" Leo asked, a little curious. "My baby book. My grandparents made it for me though, since my actual parents didn't think it was important enough." She said and put it in her bag.

"Not important enough?" He asked out loud. And then they both heard talking in the halls. "Uh oh..." She muttered and grabbed Leo, pulling him into the closet and kicking her bag in behind her, keeping the door cracked.

The door to her bedroom swung open and the light was flipped on. Her parents walked in and looked at all of her stuff.

"Where do you think she is?" Her dad asked her mother. "I don't know. Let's hope she never comes back."

Leo gasped and looked at Ellie who just stared out of the little crack.

"Maybe she got hit by a car. Or maybe she finally went insane and was sent to a mental asylum." Her mother said, making her dad laugh.

"Let's hope she's dead. No one ever even cared about her, and she was a horrible disappointment to this family. All she was ever good for was stirring up trouble." Ellie covered her mouth and started to whimper as her mother just laughed.

"I knew she would be a horrible kid. I should have gotten an abortion when I had the chance. The world would be so much better without that little emo freak." They began to leave the room and they turned off the light.

"Let's hope we get our wish." Her father said, slamming the door shut. Ellie let out a long overdue breath before opening the closet door, carrying her bag with her. Leo just stared at her.

"Ellie... Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," She lied and grabbed one last final thing and shoved it into her bag. "Let's just go." She said, climbing out of the open window, Leo following her and closing it slowly.

They walked back to the alley in uncomfortable silence. Leo broke the silence, finally.

"Ellie?"

She looked at him.

"I'm sorry... I can't imagine how hard that must have been for you." He said, sighing and grabbing her hand. She nodded and ran her free hand through her bangs.

"It doesn't matter. I was already nothing to them anyways." She said, clutching the strap around her shoulders and pulled her hand away from his and let out another heartbreaking sigh.

"I don't know where I went wrong. I don't know why the world hated me so much."

"If it means anything, I don't know either... You're kind of amazing to me." Leo said with a cheeky smile. Ellie smiled back and looked down at her feet with a nervous expression as they walked into the alley where the manhole was to the entrance of their home.

Once they got back in the lair, Ellie put her bag down and sat down in silence.

"At least now I'm somewhere I can belong." She said with a smile. She felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up at Leo.

"You couldn't belong more with anyone else." He smiled and she smiled back, rolling her shoulders forward a little. A faint blush rose to his cheeks and he jumped next to her.

"So what's in this thing?" He said, poking her bag. She rolled her eyes and opened it up, pulling out one of her many notebooks.

"These are all my sketches and things. I had some designs for weapons and such but never really put them to good use." She handed him one and he opened to a random page.

It was a perfect sketch of a lily. Even though it had no color and was made with pencil, it was perfect. He looked at Ellie and she just blew her bangs from her face as she continued to rustle through her bag. She pulled out the golden medallion and held it up to him. In the middle was a silver symbol in the shape of a rose.

"I've had it forever. My grandmother gave it to me before she died. Means a lot to me." She said simply and slipped it on before pulling out her baby book and opening it up. It was on the page and she was six years old. She was holding a stuffed turtle and was sitting on the table, smiling at the camera with her big brown eyes.

"Is that you?" Leo asked. She nodded. "Grandpa took that picture, right after he gave me that turtle." She smiled at the picture and looked at Leo who smiled as well. She then gave a little laugh and pulled out the stuffed turtle. He had sloppy stitching on his head and duct tape around one of his ankles. Ellie smiled and held it up to him.

"I named him Gibby. Took this little guy everywhere. He's in all of my pictures," She said as she started to flip through the book and show him all the pictures. And sure enough, Gibby was in all of them. Whether he be on the table in front of her or she's cuddling him as she fell asleep, Gibby meant everything to her.

"And... He's had a rough ride." She said, running her claw gently down the stitching on his head and sighing.

Leo smiled a little and flipped to the last page in the book, giving a little gasp. "When was this?"

"The Valentine's Day dance, it was about a month ago. I was on the yearbook committee so I had to be there." Leo couldn't help but stare.

She wore a simple black dress that had a plunging neckline and hugged her body in all the right places. Her once long black hair was pinned up in curls on her head with a silver clip and out of her brown eyes. Her lips lightly coated in a little purple lip gloss and her eyes dusted with black eye shadow and outlined with black liner.

She wore black silk gloves that reached her upper arms and almost 3 inch silver heels that strapped around her ankles. And around her neck sat a camera as she gave the photographer of the photo an evil look as if to say, 'I'll kill you before anyone sees that picture'.

Leo blinked and then looked at the girl next to him. She still had the same body shape and bone structure in her face but her eyes were now bright blue and her once long hair was gone. All she had left of it was her bangs.

But that still didn't mean anything to Leo. He still saw the girl in that picture. She just changed.

Leo looked back at the picture. "You're beautiful." He said. Ellie sighed.

"You're lying. And even if you weren't, it doesn't matter. That's not me anymore." She closed the book and dropped it into her bag, sighing and staring off into space while holding Gibby in her hands gently.

Leo sighed and moved closer to her before wrapping his arms around her shoulders.

"Ellie, listen to me," She looked up at him and waited.

"It doesn't matter anymore who you were. It doesn't matter who hurt you. And it doesn't matter what anyone thought of you. You are someone completely new. New and amazing. I'm sure you were amazing before, but no one saw it. But this is your chance to be who you really want to be." Her eyes were filling with tears.

"The pain is over now. Your future isn't up there, its down here. With us." Ellie smiled wide and jumped forward, hugging him tightly.

"Thank you, Leo!" She said, tears falling down her face. He noticed her wet fur and just laughed. "Why are you crying?"

"Because I've never had a friend before..." She said, giving him a fangy smile.

"Well, you have one now." Leo said, finally returning her hug.

"Five, actually," Someone said, making them both look up at the others. Mikey and Donnie walked in front of Ellie and looked down on her.

"Ellie, we know you didn't really have a family. And we know you thought you only had one other alternative," Donnie said, looking at her nervously as she looked down in shame.

"But none of that matters now. We promise to protect you and take care of you... You're one of us now." He said, kneeling down and putting one hand on her knee in a comforting gesture. She smiled at him and hugged him.

"Thanks Donnie." He smiled and hugged her back. And then another pair of arms wrapped around Ellie.

"Welcome to the family, Ellie!" Mikey said, smiling wide. Ellie giggled and finally was released from their hug and looked at Raph.

"I'm sorry for annoying you earlier. I won't do it again," She said, feeling her face start to heat up.

"It's fine. I've had way worse from... Everyone in this room, actually." He said like it was nothing.

"Hey!" April smacked his shoulder in her defense.

"Ow! Except you," He said, rubbing the soreness. Ellie snickered and then looked at the stuffed toy in her hands before smiling.

"Whaddya think, Gibby? Like our new home?" She said, being a little weird. But they weren't really phased.

"Well, he's in. Looks like I'm a sewer mutant now." She said, smiling. "Yeah!" Mikey cheered and lifted her up in his arms and squeezing the life out of her. She made a face that dignified she was suffocating.

"M-Mikey... too much." She said, trying to push herself off of him. He dropped her and gave her a nervous smile and she just rolled her eyes before standing back up and rubbing her sore back and ribcage.

And then everyone got quiet when they heard a loud growling noise. Ellie put her hands on her stomach and gasped. "Ack!"

"I think someone's hungry," April said, smirking. Ellie just gave a nervous laugh.

"Maybe a little," Her tummy began to growl again and she moaned. "Okay, a lot."

They all started laughing again. Ellie gave them an evil look and let out a sigh. "So... Can I eat something now or are you guys gonna keep laughing at me?"

"How about some tuna?" April suggested. Ellie smiled. "Good idea."

She pulled out a can of tuna from her backpack. "Uh... Why is that in your bag?" Raph asked.

"Was saving it for this stray that I found last night."

"Was this stray white and have a collar that said Florence on it?" Ellie said after April handed the tuna over to her.

"Yeah, why?"

"Yeah, don't feed that monster." April blinked and looked at the guys for an explanation.

"Don't worry about it." Donnie said. Ellie opened the can with her claws and stabbed a piece of tuna and chewed on it. She just smiled.

"This is just what I needed." She smiled and continued to eat it with her claws.

"Well, she has table manners." Donnie remarked. "More than I can say for most," He looked down at Mikey.

"Hey!" He said, offended. Ellie laughed and continued to eat until the entire can was gone. She smiled and laid down on her back, looking up at the ceiling.

"Overall... Today was a good day."


	7. Chapter 7

_**A/N: Thank you all for the great reviews! You really make my day every time I read a new one! But never stop reviewing! It makes me want to write more every time I read one! You guys are the best! **_

* * *

_**DISCLAIMER: I don't own TMNT, but I seriously wish I did! **_

* * *

The next morning came by in the blink of an eye. Ellie was happy when she woke up the next morning on the floor, curled up on her blanket and pillow, holding her stuffed Gibby. The guys had made a big deal about her having a stuffed turtle, saying she was destined to be down here with them.

Ellie guessed it made a little sense. She's always liked turtles, but when it comes to talking turtles, that's where she kind of draws the line. And since Ellie got most of her stuff back from her home, Ellie feels more like home, even if she was sleeping on the floor in Leo's room.

But she had made a little area just for herself and its where all of her stuff was. Leo had watched her set it up, and occasionally gave his input, and of course, Ellie had listened. He was quite the decorator, apparently. And she had teased him for it. Ellie even asked him if he minded the smell of incense. He just asked her what it was, making her laugh.

So when the next morning rolled out, Ellie woke up and found the incense burned out and her dull night light still on. She asked if he minded if she used it. He said that it wouldn't bother him at all. And so she kept the little light burning all night long. Ellie finally felt happy, and could sleep through the night.

She stood up off the floor and stretched her back before folding up her blanket and picking up her pillow, sliding it into the corner of her things and turned off her night light before looking at Leo, who was still asleep. Ellie couldn't help but smile, just thinking about how cute he looked when he was asleep.

She left his room silently and went down the hall and into the Dojo, which was empty. Ellie began to smile as she sat down on the floor in the middle of the room and closed her eyes.

"Meditating... Can't be that difficult." She said, letting out a little breath and keeping her eyes closed, trying her best to focus... But she just didn't have it. Ellie's small attention span got the best of her and she just left the Dojo and saw a bright light burning. It was coming from Donnie's lab.

Ellie made her way to the room and gasped. Donnie had been there all night, and fell asleep at his laptop. She rolled her eyes and picked up the blanket from the table on the other side of the room, putting it on his shoulders.

"Poor guy... He's gonna work himself to death." She picked up his laptop and was about to shut it down when she saw what was on it... "My DNA results?" She looked through it all and she seemed to understand most of it.

But the one thing that confused the heck out of her was that one word... "Kraang?"

She just let it go and saved all of it before turning the laptop off, leaving it there. Donnie began to stir a little but then just yawned and continued to sleep.

Ellie smiled and walked away from the lab but not before closing the door and muttering, "Sleep well, Donnie." And it wasn't until after she left that he woke up and heard her. Donnie felt the blanket on him and just smiled at her before falling back asleep.

Ellie looked at the room around her and let out a groan. "This place is a total mess." She muttered to herself before stepping towards the TV and turning it off. It was on all through the night, probably Mikey's fault. She began to pick up the empty pizza boxes around the whole entire place.

"Wow... Who knew turtles loved pizza." She laughed to herself and threw out all of the empty boxes. Ellie went into the kitchen and finally found something that was a valuable tool.

She left the room with the broom in her hands and began to sweep the floor in the room. After she was finished, she tossed out what the broom had picked up. And then she smelled herself...

"Ugh, I smell like the inside of a garbage can." She sighed.

Ellie looked around the room before she found another room she's never been in. Turned out to be a bathroom! She smiled wide and jumped inside before closing the door. She turned on the sink and knew that she had to scrub down everything. She might be here a while.

~1 Hour Later~

Leo woke up to the sound of soft humming. It was just outside his door, and he could see the black fur. He just smirked and stood up, walking to the door. He saw Ellie standing at the door, drying off her tail.

"Leo," She said, nervously with the towel still wrapped around her tail and her head. He snickered at how she looked. "So you found the bathroom alright?"

"Yeah, just fine." She smiled and dried off the rest of her tail, tossing the towel onto his head and walking inside the room, drying off her ears and bangs with the towel on her head. He watched as she fluffed the ears on her head and ran her fingers through her bangs before picking up her hairbrush and running it through the fur on her tail.

"So how are you getting used to your new... everything?" Leo asked, sitting down next to her on the floor. She continued to run the brush through her fur absentmindedly.

"Slowly coming to like it. I mean, it's better than before, that's for sure." She said, smiling. He watched her comb the tangles out of her fur on her head, her chest, her legs, and her arms, but couldn't reach her back. She just groaned in frustration.

"Do you need help, Ellie?" He said, smirking. Ellie looked at him and then nodded before handing the brush to him.

"Only if you want to help." He sat behind her and began to brush the fur out of her back gently, careful not to hurt her. Soon, Leo heard Ellie start purring.

He chuckled a little and finally finished brushing out her fur and handed it back to her. She smiled.

"Thanks for helping."

His face turned a little pink and he stood up. "N-No problem." He held out his hand for her, which she took gladly and stood up, rubbing her arms and smiling. "Much better."

"You do look cleaner." He smirked. She rolled her eyes and put the brush down before she slipped on her medallion and began to leave the room. Leo followed behind her and then gasped at what he saw.

"Did you clean up around here?" He asked her. She shrugged. "Had to do something while everyone was out cold." She said, smiling a little. Leo just continued to smile at what she did. The living room was completely spotless. And the smell of month old pizza was gone, thanks to the incense she was burning that smelled like cinnamon.

"Ellie, you're a miracle worker. I've been trying to get Mikey to clean up this place for weeks." Leo said, looking at her with a big smile. She smiled back.

"Well, now you can stop hounding him. If I'm gonna be down here, I'm gonna need something to do." Ellie ran her fingers through her bangs and almost began to walk away when she heard another door open. Turning around, she saw Donnie walking out of his lab and yawning.

"Wow. It actually smells nice in here." He said, rubbing his eyes. Ellie bowed down.

"Thank you, all thanks to a little incense." She smiled, motioning to the incense holder on top of the TV set.

"Just as long as you don't set anything on fire," Donnie laughed a little. She rolled her eyes. "What kind of dummy do you take me for?"

Donnie laughed. "Wow, for once I don't need to respond to that."

"Hey!" Leo said, a little offended. Ellie snickered and then began to jump around on everything like a cat would do.

"So! When do we start today?" She said, looking at him with a smile.

"Whenever you're ready."

"Oh, I'm ready now!" Ellie grinned, her tail swishing in the air.

"Alright then! Let's get started."

They both made their way to the Dojo and Ellie stood on the sidelines and watched closely at what Leo was doing. He was just showing her some of the basics on self defense for now.

"Okay..." Ellie stood up straight and waited for him to continue. "Attack me."

"Wait, what?"

"Come on, do it." He said, now in a battle ready position. Ellie gulped and nodded before closing her eyes and then running for him at full speed. She jumped but came in contact with nothing but the floor.

"Ow..." She groaned, rubbing her now sore chin and turned on her back to look up. Leo stood over her and smirked. "Sometimes the best way to face conflict, is to avoid it." He crossed his arms and continued to smirk at her. She growled and stood up rubbing her chin a little more.

"Got it." Ellie nodded, groaning a little and then getting ready again. "Try again?"

"Alright," Leo got battle ready once more and Ellie growled before dropping down to her cat-like stance. It was almost like she knew where he was going to stand because she pounced and even when he moved, she had wound her tail around his neck and pulled him to the ground with her as she landed on her butt and he landed on his face.

They both ended up groaning as Ellie removed her tail from his neck and rolled onto her stomach, rubbing her sore spots. Leo rubbed his head a little and looked at her with a shocked expression.

"You're good at that." He said with a little laugh. She smiled back and stood up with a groan, still rubbing her backside.

"I don't know what hurts more; my head, or my ego." He said, laughing as Ellie giggled and then grabbed her tail, looking at it.

"Okay, this thing is like a weapon." She said, laughing. He nodded. "Just keep it away from me,"

Ellie giggled and spun around a few times as her tail wrapped around her. Clearly, she was happy. They both heard a door open and looked up at Master Splinter.

"I see you have been teaching Ellie, Leonardo," He said. Ellie nodded and began to bounce on her feet.

"Yeah! He's a really good teacher! Watch this," She wrapped her tail around his wrist and spun a little to the side, dragging him across the floor and making him fall on the ground. She snickered and looked at Leo who was now scowling as he sat up.

"Very impressive, Ellie." Master Splinter bowed his head as she did the same, smiling.

"So... You gonna teach me how to fight?" Ellie balled up her fists and pulled up her arms as she bent her knees and smiled, like she was about to start boxing.

"We're getting there, Ellie. Take it easy," Leo said, holding up his hands as if to stop her from doing anything else. She groaned and then just began to walk in circles before sitting down on the ground and smiling innocently.

"You are responsible for everything that happens to her," Master Splinter motioned over to Ellie who was now off the ground and holding a spear in her hands. She began to twirl the spear like Leo showed her how to twirl the staff, but above her head.

"And everything she breaks," He added on as he watched her throw the spear in the air and she grinned before jumping to the side and onto a wooden pillar and giving a little growl as she jumped from the pillar and reached out into the air, grasping the spear easily and rolling as she fell back onto the ground and standing up with the spear in her hands, a big smile on her face.

"Wow!" She looked at Leo. "Now I know why cats are always so active. The adrenaline rush is awesome!" Ellie laughed loudly and then ran across the room before stabbing the floor with the end of the spear and pole vaulting over it entirely. But barely managed to land on her feet before falling over on her front and giving a little huff of frustration.

"Almost..." She said, blowing her bangs out of her eyes.

"Good luck," Master Splinter left the room and Leo looked down at Ellie who sat up and gave him a nervous giggle. He pulled the spear out of the ground and put it back where she got it from.

"No sharp objects yet, Ellie. Okay?" He smirked, making her growl and stand up.

"Yeah, whatever."

"Alright, lets see how hard you can hit." Leo said, motioning towards the dummy that had a few knives poking out of it. Ellie winced a little.

"You want me to hit that thing?"

"Yes, just go for it. Give it your best shot."

Ellie rolled her eyes and made two fists before looking at the dummy hanging from the chain... She took a few breaths before bringing her fist down on the dummy, which shook a little but it wasn't all that impressive.

"Not bad. You think you can hit harder than that?" Leo smirked at her angered expression. She just huffed and then closed her eyes before focusing her rage a little... All the pent up frustration... What she wanted to do to those brown-nosed punks that hit her. What she wanted to do to her parents.

Ellie felt the anger build deep inside and she opened her eyes, that had changed once more. Leo knew that he should stand back.

Ellie brought her fist down on the dummy and then her other one. Over and over again, she punched left and right, and it was all a blur to Leo. She managed to miss the daggers that were sticking out of the dummy but it didn't slow her down.

Inside of Ellie's mind, she was imagining one of the bullies from school that would taunt her...

"_Show us your wrists little emo girl! Show them all what a coward you are!" _Left punch. _"You'll never succeed in life! No one would hire an incompetent brat!" _Right punch. _"You won't amount to anything. You are a disgrace to this family." _A strong kick to the side. Ellie hissed as the last words filled her mind and that was her breaking point.

"_You are a worthless nobody and you will die as a disgrace!" _Ellie jumped in the air and with one final loud growl, she brought her foot to the face of the dummy and struck it angrily. When her foot came in contact with the stuffed victim, there was a bright spark and the chain broke free from the ceiling and it went flying across the room, now in a ball of flames.

Ellie fell down onto her feet and gave another low growl before she finally shook back into reality. Her eyes went wide as she saw what she had done.

"W-What happened?" Leo looked at the dummy that was now laying on the floor, burnt to a crisp. Ellie looked at him and then breathed in deeply.

"How did... How did you do that?" He said, stunned with the scene he just watched unfurl. Ellie stared at him and then looked down as it still flickered with flames.

"I... I didn't know that I could."


	8. Chapter 8

Now all four of the turtles stood over the crisped remains of the dummy that laid on the examination table of the lab. Ellie had taken a seat in a stool and was hooked up to a machine, for an odd reason. Her body was shaking and her tail was swinging wildly behind her, her ears laying flat against her head.

Donnie looked at Leo, "So, she kicked it and it just... flamed up?"

"No! It was like the fire came... From her! Like it was her anger that set it on fire." Leo said, making Ellie look down at the floor, in shame of what she had done.

"My anger's never set things on fire before," Raph pointed out.

"Thank heavens for that. We'd all be burned every day." Donnie made his way towards Ellie who curled her hands under the stool's seat and had her claws buried into the wood.

"Do you know what's wrong?" She asked him as he looked at the machine.

"I finally got your blood analyzed, Ellie... And I don't know how you're going to take to this." He held up the vial that looked like a silver type liquid. Ellie grabbed the vial from him and then looked at the monitors before looking back at the vial.

"This is my blood?" She said, looking at the monitor. He nodded once and her hands started to shake.

"You're missing the point. There is a high amount of magnesium in your blood cells, it overpowers your erythrocytes." Everyone was confused.

Everyone, except for Ellie. "So what you think you just explained to me is..."

"You're blood is deadly!" Donnie said, loudly. Ellie's eyes widened and her hands continued to shake as the vial of blood slipped from her hands and hit the ground with a smash. And instead of a splatter, her blood burst into flames. She jumped back in shock and stared at him.

"But this hasn't happened before! My blood's always been red!"

"It only happened recently. When you seemed to feed your anger, that's what reacted it! Your blood was red through the whole night but changed as soon as you let your anger go." He told her, making her sit down before she fainted on the spot. Ellie was still shaking with fear.

"My blood is flammable?"

"Not just your blood... I think you can command it." Ellie stared at him before standing up.

"And you think I want this? I don't know how to use it!" She shouted in his face. He could feel the heat radiating off of her, and he knew it wasn't a good thing.

"Ellie, calm down," He begged.

"No!" She shouted, now fuming. "They were right. I am just an accident waiting to happen! I never should have lived the first time I made a cut. I should have ended it right there!"

"You don't mean that," Mikey then tried to calm her down by stepping forward, attempting to hug her.

"Mikey, get back." Donnie warned him.

"I'm nothing but trouble. My parents even said so! Ugh, I don't want to be here. Not if the world thinks I'm good for nothing! I'm like a wildfire that can't be stopped! I'm like a grenade! I know that one day, I will go off and hurt everyone around me! Why?! Why was I cursed with this?!" She shouted. They all began to see flames starting on her hands and around her body.

"Oh boy..." Donnie muttered nervously, stumbling back. He dragged everyone back with them.

"Call me a nobody? I'll show them a nobody. I'll make them sorry!" Her whole body was now blazing and the flames got brighter as the fire began to flicker in her eyes.

"_I'll make them all sorry!" _Her voice was now like a demonic echo as the fire exploded around her and hit everything in the room. Several beacons shattered from the heat, the monitors shorted out, the papers caught on fire, and the metal melted. The guys dove under the tables and just barely missed the blaze as it set everything on fire.

Ellie gasped and then came back to her senses. The anger left her body and she looked around at the remains. Everything was broken, charred, or melted. Her heart felt heavy and her eyes stung with tears.

Ellie's back hit the wall and she slid down it as the remaining flames went out and died down. Her whole body shook with fear and she sat down in the ashes, starting to cry.

"What have I done...?"

The boys finally came out of hiding and stared at everything. Even Raph was in total shock. Ellie just sat there, tears streaming down her furry face as she stared wide eyed at the floor, shaking.

"Ellie!" Leo slid across the ground and tried to get her attention but she refused to look up.

"Ellie, look at me, please..." She still kept her head down and just continued to shake as the tears spilled over. She couldn't look at him. Her shame and fear was taking over her now. It was like she was falling into the black.

"Ellie?" She wasn't responding and her eyes were starting to close. Ellie soon toppled over onto her side and her head hit the floor with a loud bang.

"Ellie!" Leo tried to shake her back to her senses. Everyone surrounded her and tried to get her to come back awake but she was falling in too deep. It was like there was no return from the dark hole inside of her as everything got blurry through the small space, barely being able to see anything.

"She's almost out!" Ellie heard Donnie faintly as her ears stopped working. "Ellie... Hold on..." Leo grabbed her hand and her eyes fell closed all the way and the last thing she heard was Leo calling her name before everything went out and she fell into the black.

~Hours Later~

The first thing she saw was red hair and a bright yellow shirt.

Ellie let out a long groan and held her forehead as she tried to sit up. "Ellie?"

She turned over and now knew it was April. All Ellie did was look at her and then bolted upwards. "The guys!" She said.

"Ellie, relax..." April put her hand on her chest and pushed her down back on the bed. Ellie's heart thudded in her chest as she stared at the ceiling, fear stirring inside of her.

"I... I destroyed Donnie's lab." She covered her eyes and almost started crying again but April put her hand on Ellie's shoulder, rubbing it carefully.

"Donnie's a genius. The lab is almost fixed, Ellie. You didn't do anything permanent." April calmed her down a little and helped Ellie sit up straight. She handed her a glass of water and she accepted it happily, drinking all of it.

"So... How are the guys?" April chuckled.

"They've seen worse, believe me. They're fine." Ellie smiled and scratched her head, running her fingers through her bangs.

"You know... Someone kind of wants to see you," April opened the door and Ellie saw Leo just pacing back and forth like an angry beast. But when he saw the door open, he ran inside and hugged her tight.

Ellie squeaked in surprise. "Ellie, you're okay!"

"Yeah, I'm okay." She said patting the back of his shell a little awkwardly. He pulled back and gave her a big smile.

"Thought something bad happened to you." He said, nervousness clear in his voice. Ellie laughed and just waved it off. "No. Nothing."

He hugged her again, this time, a little tighter.

"How do you feel?" He said, pulling away once more. She thought about it a little dramatically.

"A little hot, now that you mention it." He laughed at her. "I would assume so."

Ellie stood up slowly and began to leave the room and Leo walked right next to her, careful to catch her in case she fell over. But she kept her balance as she made it into the living room. The TV was off and Raph was sitting down, tapping his foot impatiently. Mikey was nervously twirling one of his nun-chucks and Donnie was pacing back and forth.

"Hey Donnie," Everyone looked up at Ellie. "Stop pacing. You're creating a draft."

"ELLIE!" Everyone ran towards her and she was surrounded by hugs. "I'm so glad your okay!" Mikey said, hugging her the tightest. She coughed a little and tried to push herself away but he wouldn't give. She just laughed nervously and patted him on the shoulder.

"Okay, Mikey, you're gonna crush her!" Raph said, making Mikey drop Ellie on her feet and take a breath, holding her stomach.

"Glad you're alive, Ellie," Raph gently pushed on her chin with his knuckles and she just gave him a giggle. "C'mon, say it. You were worried."

Raph crossed his arms and gave her a look before saying, "Fine. I was worried." She squealed happily and jumped forward, hugging him. He just awkwardly hugged her back, unable to stop himself from smiling. She smiled even wider and he put her down. She looked at Donnie and felt shame.

"I'm sorry I destroyed your lab, Donnie... Must be pretty ticked off, huh?"

"Not at all!" He said, looking a little shocked that she said that. Ellie jumped back a little and held her hands behind her back.

"Ellie, you didn't know what you were doing. You were mad,"

She rubbed the back of her neck and let her ears fall back on her head. She frowned a little and looked back up at him. "Must've been tough to clean all that stuff up."

"Not really. April helped out," Ellie smirked and just smiled before hugging him.

"Thank you, Donnie. I'm happy that you aren't mad at me."

"I can't be mad at you, Ellie." He smiled and hugged her back tightly. She purred a little and pulled back to look him in the eyes.

"But, we do need to get that burning under control. Kinda like what we needed to do with Raph's temper." Raph said nothing, knowing he was right. Ellie let out a long sigh before nodding once.

"Right. But how can we do that?"

"We need to practice. I.E. you need to get mad at us." Everyone stared at him. Even Ellie.

"Oh no! No way, I'm not risking all of your lives a second time. One was enough." Ellie said, sighing and walking away. Everyone exchanged a look before April started walking that way, but Leo stopped her.

"I'll go talk to her."

"No, I'll go talk to her." They all looked at Raph and gave him the 'Are you insane?' look.

"What, I can do this! I'm talking to a hot-headed girl." And he headed for the Dojo, where Ellie was sitting on the floor, tossing Gibby in the air. She sighed as the little stuffed turtle landed back in her hands and continued to stare at the ceiling.

"They just want to help you, Ellie... Even if you don't like the idea, Donnie's gonna go on and plan it. But would you really want to risk their lives just so you can control your power?" There was a moment of silence before she replied to herself.

"Absolutely not. They're not expendable... They're my friends. And I don't want to lose my first real friends-" "And you won't."

Ellie nearly screamed as she saw Raph looking down at her. She just jumped up and gasped, clutching the fur on her chest. Raph jumped back in shock and stared at her wide eyed.

"Raph! Don't sneak up on me like that!" She shouted out of fear. Raph flinched a little.

"I thought cats had good hearing,"

"Well yeah, when they aren't talking to themselves, I'm sure." She let out another breath before running her fingers through her bangs. "What do you want?"

"To try and convince you into rethinking Donnie's plan."

Ellie gave a shout of frustration and then began to pace the room like an angry animal, making Raph step back a little, afraid she might set him ablaze.

Ellie sat down on the floor and stared at her hands before finally speaking.

"I know you think I'm selfish, Raph. But it's not that... I just don't want to see anyone get hurt. You and the guys are my first real friends. I just... I can't put you in jeopardy." He sat down next to her and watched her take a huge breath as her ears fell flat against her head.

"I know why you feel like you have to keep us safe... But I think your missing the point here,"

She just looked at him sideways before turning around and facing the wall, pulling her knees up to her chest. He sighed and moved next to her again.

"Ellie... How did you do it?"

"Do what?" She said, finally looking up at him.

"Live like that... How could you live with the pain... The anger? How did you do it?" Ellie sighed and then looked down at her hands again.

"None were healthy alternatives..." She turned her hand over and exposed the scars still on her wrist. Raph looked at them again and then looked her in the eyes. And when he looked close enough, he saw something hidden under her bangs. Ellie sighed and moved them out of the way.

On the top on her head sat a long and big scar that looked more painful than anything that could be endured. He gasped a little and brought his hand to the scar, holding her bangs out of the way and touching it himself.

"How did that-" "A daughter can't choose her family." She stood up and felt her tail swing back and forth as she looked at the floor.

"They always told me how... How much of a disgrace I was. How worthless I would turn out. And how I could never do anything right..." She reached up and touched the scar but ripped her hand away, flinching.

"This is what I got for fighting back... I slapped my father hard enough to leave a handprint. My mother... She held me down as my father grabbed a knife and..." She closed her eyes as the memory came flooding back. Her screaming in pain and trying to run away as the knife dug into her skin, tearing it off entirely.

Raph tried to put his hand on her shoulder but she flinched and shook her shoulder away.

"And that is why I don't fight back anymore. Because you never know what is gonna come back. No matter what you do, it comes back to you, times three." Her words were now stuck in his brain and it seemed impossible to shake them away. He opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted.

"Raph!" Mikey shouted. "We're heading out for patrol!" Ellie turned and looked at Raph before flinging her head in that direction where Mikey was.

"Just remember that the next time you hurt someone because they... deserved it." Her ears fell flat against her head as he walked away. She sighed and sat down on the floor where she was and closed her eyes tightly.

"_This has been a horrible day..." _Her mind said to her, making her nod in agreement.

"Elliot," She turned around and looked up at Master Splinter. "Something is troubling you," It was more of a statement than a question.

"Yeah... I just can't do what they want me to do." She curled her hand up in frustration and sighed again before standing up. "I don't want to risk their lives just so I can get my anger under control. That's not how I want to learn,"

"So you feel you are a threat to them?" He said simply, making her flinch a little. It was now completely obvious, Ellie thought of herself as a bad thing.

"Yes, I do. I-I don't want to be, they are my only friends! And I can't go home, my parents are_ hoping_ I'm dead! But I don't want to hurt them. Any of them," Her heart felt heavy as she covered her eyes.

"Elliot," She looked up finally. "You fear you will hurt them, yes. But they fear that you will hurt yourself. They are not simply risking their lives to get your anger under control, they are hoping you will agree to this risk because they don't want you to hurt yourself anymore,"

Ellie frowned at Master Splinter's words but knew that he was right. It took a little while to feel them settle in and she finally made a choice.


	9. Chapter 9

Ellie stood on the roof of a very tall building and paced back and forth with a frustrated sigh. She had tried to get angry so she could actually see what she was capable of, but it seemed a little impossible for some reason. She just wasn't angry.

"C'mon, Ellie... Can't be that hard." She sighed and stood there with her feet apart and her hands at her sides. "Focus..."

She thought about her parents. About how they hated her, and that they hoped she was dead. The hateful things they said about her, and that was more than enough to push her over the edge.

Ellie forced the anger into her body and tried to focus it to her hand. And her hand was immediately engulfed in flames. She nearly screamed and stared at the blaze she held in her palm.

She used her other hand and touched the flame. Nothing, it was harmless to her. Soon, the anger was replaced with happiness. With a short giggle, she twirled around in place as the fire danced in her hand.

Ellie felt like a weight was lifted off her shoulders as the flames traveled up her arms and then soon, her whole body was ablaze. She kept it under control, and her happiness was what was fueling it this time. The fire was getting brighter as she got happier.

Ellie crouched down in her cat-like stance and felt her tail swish back and forth as she started to run across the roof and then let out a small growl before jumping from one rooftop to the other. The adrenaline rush was huge and it was making her purr with excitement.

Ellie's tail swished back and forth as she jumped another rooftop and then another. She continued down the line of concrete buildings and felt completely free. It was so amazing up here, and she felt like a free spirit! Nothing could hold her down, not all of the insults in the world could bring her down to the ground! It was like... She could fly!

This continued for many minutes but then she started to lose the adrenaline rush and went back to the lair. The fire had finally died down on her and she shook her head, purring happily.

"That was so fun!" She said, running into the lair in her cat-like stance and leaped in the line of sight of the TV. But then something snapped her to attention. She looked on the couch and saw some sort of cell phone.

Picking it up, she saw Leo's picture. Finally she answered. "Hello?"

"Ellie! It's Leo," He seemed out of breath.

"Leo? What's going on?"

"We're in trouble! For once, Mikey leaving his T-phone behind was a good thing!" Ellie sighed and began to pace around. "What do you need?"

"We could really use some fire right now!" Raph shouted in the background.

"Ellie, I know you said you didn't want to use what you have, but-" She cut him off.

"Forget what I said! You guys are in trouble! Just tell me where you are, I'm on my way!" Ellie said, keeping the phone on her as she ran into her room and grabbed her leather jacket before running out of the lair. Leo directed her to where they were and she ran all the way there, via the rooftops.

She skidded to a halt, sliding across the rooftop with her claws and letting out a little growl as she looked down. There, was a giant mutant dog man, and a fish with arms and robotic legs. "Gross..." She winced a little.

The turtles were there, hanging off the edge of the building, tied to the side with Mikey's nun-chuck chain.

"This is your last chance, you cold-blooded freaks. Give us what we want and we promise you'll die quickly!" The dog barked at them. "Whatever you want, we don't have!" Leo shouted, looking up. They were all disarmed and Mikey was fearing for his life.

"Hmm... Maybe we should let them drop?" The fish suggested. Ellie's instincts suddenly took over as she got scent of the fish. It made her stomach growl.

"I don't think so!" Ellie shouted, jumping forward onto the building and bared her teeth in a fangy grin.

"Ellie!" Mikey shouted, smiling wide. Ellie growled and got down in her cat-like stance. "Hate to bust your blimp like bubble, buddy. But the fun is over." Ellie felt the flame that was starting in her body and it flickered on her body.

"Oh no, now that she's here... The fun just begun. Thank you for bringing us what we wanted." The fish said, looking at the turtles.

"They were after Ellie?" Raph hissed at Leo who just shrugged, "I didn't know that!"

The dog jumped at Ellie and she dropped down on the concrete and lifted her hands up. The fire struck the dog just in time and he whimpered before falling down and whimpering in pain.

Ellie hissed, baring her teeth at the fish, getting on all fours and approaching it. It looked kinda scared.

"You picked the worse night to make me mad... Guess what? This kitty is hungry, and I know what's on my menu..." She lunged at him and growled, baring her teeth. But the fish was faster, bringing his mechanical leg up and kicking her in the face. She fell back on the rooftop and hissed angrily at him.

"I would kill you if I wanted to, but my boss would like you alive." He stomped on her tail and she hissed again before bringing her foot up and kicking him in the face. He got off her tail and she stood up, gasping for air.

"Well sorry to disappoint your _boss, _But I'm going nowhere!" She jumped for him again and this time, she wrapped her tail around his arm, pulling him down to the ground and knocking him away from the Turtles.

"You guys okay?" Ellie ran up to the chain and started to pull on it, bringing them back up.

"We're fine! That was a pretty slick maneuver." Raph smirked. She smiled a fangy smile and looked at the blue masked Turtle.

"You can thank Leo for that," She said, still pulling them up by the chain. But little did she know that someone was coming up behind her.

"Ellie, look out!" She turned around just in time to feel herself being knocked off the side of the building. Ellie grabbed the ledge and dug her claws into the concrete as best as she could. She looked up at the maniac dog mutant and he stomped on her hand. She gave a yelp of pain as he reached down and grabbed the fur around her neck.

"Ellie!" Leo shouted as he helplessly watched her dangle from the 10 story building. The dog just laughed and then let her go. Ellie screamed out loud before realizing she was falling down the building.

"_Ellie!" _She could hear Leo's voice as he shouted after her. Ellie felt her shoulder get scrapped on the side of the building and then she got an idea... Thinking as fast as she could, she grabbed the concrete building with her claws and it slowed her down. Soon, she was only 3 floors away from the ground and breathing hard as she looked up.

"That was too close..." She then used her cat-like abilities to run up the wall. Ellie had a job to do, and was not about to let the guys become turtle dog food.

She got closer and closer to the roof and managed to sneak up on the dog and fish.

"Well, looks like we have a body to collect. Or whatever is left of it." Ellie growled as she hung off the side of the building, carefully tucking her tail away so they couldn't see her. She looked at the guys and Leo looked heartbroken. He must think she was dead.

Ellie saw the dog start to walk away and she hissed. "Not so fast!" With a big leap upwards, she made it on the roof and jumped forward, tackling him to the ground.

"Ellie!" She heard the shout of joy from everyone as she brought her claws down on the dog's face. He whined and she felt the anger travel through her and she jumped up before feeling the fire start in her hands.

"Get her!" The fish demanded. Ellie hissed and thrusted her hands out. The fire exploded in front of them and sent them flying backwards, across the rooftop. She closed her hands up and felt the fire die down.

"Oh yeah! Feel the burn, dog breath! Feel the burn!" She said, twirling a little and smiling evil-like.

"Yeah, don't mind us. Just hanging off the side of a building," Raph snapped at her. She rolled her eyes and pulled on the chain, helping them back up on the roof, finally getting them unbound.

"I knew you'd pull through." Leo smiled at her. She bowed her head a little and smiled up at him before hugging him tightly. "I couldn't let you guys die."

"That's sweet and all, but we should really get going," Donnie said, crossing his arms. Ellie let him go and felt her skin heat up under her fur. They all broke in a sprint for the other buildings and finally made it home.

~In the Lair~

Ellie was still bummed about the fact her jacket was burnt to nothing. "This stinks."

"Oh, get over it. It's just a jacket." Leo teased as he sat on the floor in front of her. She gave him an evil look and jumped on him, tackling him to the floor.

"Ow!" He snapped as she dug her claws slightly into his arm.

She laughed evil-like and purred a little as she leaned down. "That's no way to speak to someone who just saved your life."

"Okay, okay!" He shouted as her claws still dug into his arm. "I'm sorry!" He said, pounding his feet on the floor. She giggled and let him get up. He rubbed the sore spot on his arm and she smirked, sitting on her knees and looking at him, their faces inches apart.

He scowled at her. "You think you're funny, huh?"

"I think I'm adorable," She giggled and started to purr as her tail swayed back and forth in the air. Leo's cheeks suddenly turned a bright pink and he stared into her eyes a little longer than normal.

Ellie bit her lip a little and got a few centimeters closer to him. "What are you thinking?" She asked.

He just said one word. "You."

Ellie felt her heart thud in her chest as she felt his hot breath on her face. And even though Leo couldn't tell, she was blushing furiously. Leo brought his three fingered hand up to her bangs and brushed them away from her eyes so he could see them better.

"You really are adorable, Ellie." He said softly, making Ellie's purring get louder. Their faces were only one inch apart, Ellie biting her lip as she saw Leo start to close his eyes, making her do the same. Just a few more centimeters...

"Hey guys!" The two shrieked and Ellie jumped forward in fear, falling on top of Leo in quite an awkward position. They both heard snickering from behind them and Ellie turned her head to see Raph, Donnie and Mikey standing there. Donnie and Raph were smirking but Mikey just looked confused.

"Sorry, were we interrupting something?" Raph smirked, crossing his arms. Ellie looked at Leo who chuckled nervously, his cheeks turning pink. She now realized that she was straddling him, so she got off of him.

"Looks like you two were up to no good," Donnie remarked, making Ellie's fur get hot again.

"I don't get it." Mikey remarked, looking at the other two for an explanation. Raph sighed. "We'll tell you when your older."

Ellie and Leo shared an embarrassed look as they stood up and ignored the boys laughing. Ellie opened the door to Leo's room first and sat down on her bed on the floor, picking up her brush and running it through her fur.

"I'm sorry, Ellie." She looked to her side, seeing Leo sitting down next to her. She just shrugged. "It's no big deal. Brothers like to tease each other, that's a known fact."

"I know," Leo sighed. "But that was real embarrassing."

"And it won't happen again, right? I know how this routine goes." She scowled and continued to run the brush down her body. She heard Leo sigh and knew he was deep in thought.

"I don't want you to think I'm just some other guy, Ellie." She finally stopped brushing her fur long enough to look into his beautiful blue eyes that seemed to be heavy with sadness and embarrassment. Ellie reached out and put her hand on his shoulder gently and watched him sigh heavily again.

"I just... think you're special... I mean, you're different. And I like that about you." His eyes refused to look into hers as he said this to her. Ellie leaned down and looked into his eyes.

"Then you know how I feel about you," She said, biting her lip. His eyes got wide as he stared at her. She looked down at her hands in shame and then felt him lift up her face with his finger under her chin.

"So... It doesn't bother you that I'm a mutant turtle?" He said. She shook her head and laughed. "Not at all." He smiled wide.

"And it doesn't bother you that I'm a mutant cat?" He laughed himself and grabbed her hands. "Absolutely not."

Without even thinking, Ellie jumped forward and kissed Leo in the tip of his snout, making him blush a deep crimson. She giggled nervously as she saw how he looked.

"Sorry," She muttered. He just laughed. "For what?"

This was a big step for Ellie. She had finally let someone in all the way. Leo was unlike anyone she had ever met, and she doesn't plan on losing him any time soon.

They slept in the same bed that night, Ellie curled up tight against Leo's plastron as he had one arm wrapped around her waist and the other petting her back absentmindedly until they both fell asleep. Ellie's tail was curled tightly around his upper thigh again, her legs tangled in his and her hands held closely to her chest in front of her as she felt Leo's chin rest against the top of her head, her ears folded back as she slept.

Ellie was finally at peace with herself. And it made her happier than ever.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Okay, I literally wrote this chapter over and over again until I was finally satisfied! I wanted to add everyone into the story and, for some reason, I saw this as a fit way to add our favorite hockey player! *SPOILER ALERT* Anyways, I hope you all enjoy this chapter! So sorry that it took so long! **

**Stay Excellent!**

* * *

It was only a week after the big fight on the surface. The days for Ellie were beginning to blur together. The fights with Raph and Mikey were a pain, due to the fact that Raph is so strong and Mikey is so unpredictable. Fighting with April is easier, but she's gotten a few cuts from that Tessen. But her hardest opponent is Leo, no doubt. Unlike all of the others, he doesn't let his emotions get in the way when fighting her. Instead, he wants to beat her. Since they got together at the beginning of the week, they've both been fighting to prove who the best is.

So far, Leo has won every time, embarrassing Ellie to the extent. But this time, she's been training with Raph more and more, and she's been seeking advice from Master Splinter on how to confuse or trick your opponent. Raph might be an angry fighter, but he comes in really handy when you learn how to take a hit. She has a cut on her thigh under her fur from trying to disarm him, but it didn't work out so well. He's punched her several times, but no matter what, she always gets back up.

Ellie has lots of promise, no doubt about that. But it has taken lots of practice over the week to get her fire under control. Donnie has been doing his best to perfect the practice ring he has set up in an abandoned sewer pipe line. Its target practice and anger control. So far, she's almost got the target practice perfect, but her anger is still hard to control.

Ellie has become such a strong person over the course of a few weeks. Just two weeks ago, she would rather hide and cry, but now she is up and ready to fight for what is right and defend her family. She considers the Turtles her brothers now. All of them but Leo, because that would be sort of awkward.

But now as she stood in the Dojo today, yet another practice exercise with Raph, she was very confident. Not a shred of fear was in her eyes. So as they began to do the deadly circle like two sharks swimming around its prey, Ellie smirked. Her bright white teeth showed, her fangs glinting in the light.

"You think you can beat me today, Ellie?" Raph said, twirling one of Sais in his hand. Ellie grasped the weapon she now favored over all the others, The Naginata, in her hands and began to move her feet around carefully and swiftly. Just like a ferocious feline would. Her tail twitched back and forth as she narrowed her eyes.

Raph wouldn't admit it, but being stared down by a fierce feline that could catch fire was a little nerve racking. But he wouldn't let his emotions show. He could see the flames dancing in her eyes.

"I dunno… Can you handle the heat?" She smirked and before Raph knew it, she had lunged at him. He ended up falling on one of his knees, both of his sais over his head while the staff of Ellie's weapon was in between the both of them. Ellie had a very angered look on her face and Raph felt a shiver of fear.

Ellie used her cat abilities to completely flip herself over the weapon, bringing her foot in contact with the back of his shell, making him stumble forward. Raph turned around and growled while Ellie twirled the staff in her hands, smirking. She blew her black bangs from her eyes and looked up just in time to see Raph charging at her. She barely had time to react before she was slammed to the ground and he stabbed his Sai next to her wrist, keeping her left one confined to the floor in between the blades.

Ellie squeaked in surprise and looked up just in time to dodge the blade that was traveling towards her face. She rolled over as much as she could and wrapped her tail around his wrist. She used as much force as possible and sent him across the room with a loud growl.

Ellie carefully let her hand go relaxed and she was able to slip her hand free from its confined space in between the blades. Raph stood up with a very angry look on his face. Ellie was still rubbing her sore wrist when she heard the loud thuds of Raph's feet. She turned around just in time to earn a very hard punch in her stomach.

Ellie skidded across the floor on her backside and completely flipped over on her stomach. She began to cough, holding her stomach. Before Raph could hit her again, they both heard a loud shout. "_Yame!_"

Ellie knew what that meant. Her and Raph ran to the other side of the room where Master Splinter stood and they both kneeled down in front of him. Ellie coughed a few more times and rubbed her sore midsection a little.

"Elliot, you are improving greatly," Master Splinter told her. Ellie bowed her head slightly and waited for his constructive criticism. "But you are still lacking the pain tolerance that will build over time. But overall, I am very impressed at how far you have come," Raph put a hand on her shoulder and she looked at him, smiling slightly.

They were both dismissed from the Dojo and Ellie was still coughing a little, rubbing her stomach.

"I didn't hurt you too bad, did I?" Raph asked her. Ellie snorted. "You wish," But she was lying. In truth, her stomach hurt pretty badly. But she thought it was best that she didn't tell him.

Ellie passed Donnie's lab and heard a loud crash. Her ears folded back as she flinched. "What the…" She decided that it should be investigated. Ellie made her way towards his lab and saw that there was broken glass everywhere.

"What the heck happened here?" Ellie said, looking around at the shattered glass. "N-Nothing! Everything's fine!" Donnie lied, scrambling to pick up the dropped papers, but managed to step on the broken glass. He screamed and fell over on his shell, groaning and holding his foot. Ellie snorted and grabbed the broom next to the door.

"Relax, Donnie. I won't say anything," She promised, sweeping up the shards of glass and dumping them in the trash can. After that, she grabbed his foot and looked at the piece of glass in his foot.

"OK, this might hurt a little… Hold your breath," She said, wrapping her claws around the shard and ripping it from his foot. He nearly kicked her in the face but she stopped him before he could.

Being the cat she is, Ellie decided against her human instincts to lick the wound. Donnie looked at her in a very funny way and she then realized what she did.

"Gah! Gross! Turtle blood!" She stuck her tongue out and started to wipe her tongue on her furry arm, trying to get the taste out. Donnie just laughed at her before they heard someone clear their throat. Ellie and Donnie looked up at April who was smirking.

"Am I interrupting something…?" She snickered, covering her mouth as a snort escaped her nose. Ellie stuck her tongue out. "Unless you count the foul taste of turtle blood, not at all," She said, a shiver running down her spine. As she was looking down, she heard a very unenthusiastic cheer from Donnie.

"And, Oh look! It's Casey Jones…" He rolled his eyes. Ellie looked at Donnie and then at the person he was talking about. In one instant, her eyes went to slits and she backed away in fear. "You…"

The boy stared at her in surprise as she slipped across the floor on all fours and shook with fear.

"Ellie… What's wrong?" Donnie asked. The boy looked at her and suddenly, Ellie sprinted out of the room on all fours and into her and Leo's bedroom, shaking with fear. Leo looked up from the comic book he was reading and stared at Ellie.

"Ellie? Are you alright? What's wrong?" He asked, kneeling down and putting his hand on her shoulder.

"C-C-Cas-sey J-Jo-ones…" She stuttered over and over again, panting with fear. Leo gave her a confused look and then looked at the door when it opened. Donnie looked down at the girl trembling in fear, hugging her fluffy tail. "Donnie, what happened?"

"I don't know," Donnie told Leo. "She freaked out when she saw Casey," He said. Ellie was now rocking back and forth, tears slipping from her eyes and on her furry cheeks.

"S-S-Still H-Hur-rts," She whimpered and suddenly held her side, falling over and curling up into a ball of fear.

Suddenly, it hit Donnie like a punch in the face. "Ellie… Is Casey one of the kids that bullied you?" He asked her. She just nodded and brought her hand to her cheek, where the bruise used to be.

"Did he ever hit you..?" Once again, just a nod. Donnie's eyes were now up in flames and he was steaming with anger.

"Now I _am _gonna hurt him!" Donnie jumped up and tried to run towards the direction where Casey obviously was. But Leo stopped him. "Donnie, don't!" Leo was pretty upset too but he didn't want to hurt his friend. But then again, he didn't like to see his girlfriend in so much pain…

"Pounding Casey's face in won't change anything," Leo said flatly. "But it might make him say he's sorry…?"

"He probably doesn't even remember Ellie. Don't go stirring up trouble," Leo sighed and simply wrapped his arms around Ellie, rocking her back and forth comfortingly. Ellie opened her eyes slightly and jumped forward, hugging him tightly. "Don't let him hurt me,"

"No, Ellie. I won't let anyone hurt you, _ever _again," He whispered into her ear that perked up at his voice. Donnie couldn't help but kneel down and wrap his arms around her as well.

"None of us will. We promise," Ellie hiccupped uncontrollably and tried to stand up but fell over. Ellie looked in between the two brothers.

"I w-wan-nt to t-t-talk to m-m-mas-ster Spl-linter," She asked them both. Donnie nodded. "Yeah!" Donnie and Leo lifted her up carefully and Leo picked her up bridal style. Ellie snuggled tightly into Leo's plastron and held her hands against the middle of it.

They both walked out of the room and Donnie and Leo looked at Casey who was still confused. Leo passed by while Donnie stayed behind, a very angry look on his face.

"What the heck is wrong with her?" Casey said, crossing his arms. Donnie snapped. "I'll tell ya what's wrong with her! She's so paranoid and terrified because of you! Why did you hurt her? _Why?!_" Donnie nearly shouted, running forward and grabbing him by the front of his shirt and holding him up to where his feet couldn't touch the ground.

April jumped back in shock and stared at Donnie. She's never seen him so angry! Donnie looked ready to break his neck and stomp his face in. "Donnie!" April shouted.

"If it were up to me, you would pay severely for what you did! Luckily, Leo doesn't want me to kill you," Donnie snarled in Casey's face. He looked terrified… "You lay one single finger on Ellie, you'll regret the day you ever met us," He dropped Casey and he fell down on the ground, staring up at him in fear.

"Wait… Ellie? The freak from school?" And with that, Donnie snapped. He brought his fist up behind his head and brought it down on Casey's cheek, punching him as hard as he could without causing permanent damage.

"Donnie!" Before he could do anymore damage, Mikey and Raph wrapped their arms around Donnie's shoulders and held him back.

Meanwhile, in the Dojo, Leo let Ellie walk towards master Splinter who was meditating. She carefully stepped towards him and sat down in front of him, crossing her legs just like him.

"What is troubling you, Elliot?" Master Splinter said, without looking up at her. Ellie whimpered, biting her lip slightly, her nose twitching and her whiskers wiggled.

"I'm sorry to bother you, Sensei. It's just… Casey Jones and I don't have a good history… And when he showed up here today, I was… almost petrified," She frowned, looking down at her hands that were shaking in her lap. Master Splinter let out a low groan, almost as if he was thinking over what he was going to say.

"Have you ever told him how you felt?" He asked. Ellie simply grabbed her tail and shook her head. "No, master. I've always been too scared that he might hurt me more. He is a hockey player, after all,"

"Not everyone was out to get you when you were human, Elliot. Casey has proven himself worthy to be down here and around my sons," Ellie looked down at her lap again and she sighed, itching behind her ear.

"But Master, what if I get sent into another panic attack? What if my cat side takes over? What if… I hurt him with my fire?"

"May I ask why you think it is necessary to not hurt Casey, even though he has hurt you?"

"Well…" Ellie rubbed the back of her neck and frowned. "I don't know. I just don't want him to think I'm a monster. I don't want any of the others to think I'm a monster either… "

Master Splinter gave a small smile at her. "You must talk to Casey. It will make everything better. Trust me," Ellie ran her claws through her tail and nodded once before standing up and walking out of the Dojo towards where she saw Casey.

And that's when she saw Casey and Donnie about to start fighting. "Why'd you do it? Why did you hurt her?!" Donnie shouted at Casey who was being held back by April. Donnie was being held back by Raph _and _Mikey!

"Why do you even care?!" Casey shouted, finally breaking free from April's grasp and lunging at Donnie who ripped free from his brothers. Ellie gasped as was about to pound his face in and Casey looked ready to de-shell him. Ellie ran forward and stood in between the two of them.

"Stop it!" Ellie shouted, putting one hand on Donnie's plastron. Donnie just stared at her. "You're defending him? After all he's done to you!" He yelled in her face. Ellie closed her eyes and then felt someone shove her from her place.

"Take your feline girlfriend and stay out of my face!" Casey shouted. He shoved her directly into Donnie's plastron and she stumbled a little.

"That is it!" Donnie shouted and tried to attack him.

"OK, you two need a _time out!_" Ellie got so mad that her body flamed up. The heat from her hands traveled through her whole body and she nearly set them both on fire as she thrust her hands out in frustration.

Donnie jumped back in surprise and began to calm down as the flames seemed to get brighter and brighter. Ellie was not happy.

Casey fell over in shock when she flamed up and just stared at her in fear as he was on the ground, panting. Ellie panted in anger as her flaming body refused to go out. She looked at Donnie and then at Casey.

"You guys are supposed to be friends! Don't fight!" Ellie begged, the fire now getting even brighter. The air around everyone seemed to get thinner and thinner until Ellie breathed slowly and curled her hands into fists. The fire on her body finally died down and she closed her eyes, breathing in and then breathing out.

"Donnie, I thought you knew better," Ellie sighed and rubbed her forehead. There was a massive headache coming on. Leo finally walked up behind Ellie and put his hands on her arms.

"Ellie? Are you OK?" He asked. She blinked several times and nodded. "I'm okay," She lied to him. All four of the Turtles surrounded her, making sure she was okay. Even Raph was concerned. Ellie just turned around and was about to walk away when someone put their hand on her shoulder. She tensed up and saw that it was Raph.

Without even thinking and without caring about who was around him, he pulled Ellie into a very tight and very warm hug. Everyone stared.

It was rare that Raph showed he cared, and this was… Huge for him. Ellie bit down on her lip and wrapped her arms around his neck. It was a great feeling to know that someone like Raph could have emotional bonds with her.

All they could do was stare at them as Ellie's tail found its way around Raph's waist and her ears laid themselves against the top of her head. She breathed in and then out very slowly as Raph ran his fingers up and down the fur on her back.

"You know all of the pain he caused you is in the past… The only thing in your future is a new life… It's time to leave the old one behind… Completely. You have changed. And so has he, trust me…" He was right. It had been at least 5 months since Casey had ever touched her. 5 months ago, he didn't know the turtles or April. He has changed.

Ellie smiled brightly and finally pulled away to look into his eyes. He turned a slight shade of red from embarrassment.

April walked up behind Casey and then brought her hand up to the back of his head. It made contact and there was a loud echo.

"Aowww!" Casey snapped, bringing his own hand up to the back of his head with a glare. April gave him the evilest of looks. "You'd better apologize…" She sneered.

Ellie turned around to look at Casey who looked terrified of her. Ellie stepped forward, with her head down and ears folded back.

Casey was about to talk when Ellie spoke up. "Casey I'm sorry," Everyone stared. Why was she apologizing?

"I-I'm sorry for scaring you like I did. And… I'm sorry for everything before. I'm sorry for whatever I did to make you hate me so much, even if it was just my existence, I'm sorry…" She looked down at her feet and grabbed her tail nervously.

Casey looked at the others who all had a scowl on their faces. Even Mikey was upset with him. Casey had no choice.

"No… I'm sorry, Ellie. I had no reason to hate you so much… What I did was… mean. And I didn't realize just how much it hurt you… I'm really, really sorry." He looked down at her. Ellie looked up at Casey and it looked like she was about to cry.

"You mean it?"

"Yeah!" Casey approved without hesitation. That seemed to be all Ellie needed. She jumped forward and wrapped her arms around him and was purring loudly. Casey's reflexes were still on the rusty side so when she pounced, she managed to knock them both over on the concrete.

Casey's head came in contact with the floor and let out a loud groan of pain. Ellie pushed herself up on her arms and blushed under her black fur.

"Heh… Sorry," Ellie stood up and held her hand out to him. He carefully grabbed it as she pulled him up to his feet.

"Well!" Raph shouted, running up to the both of them and putting his arms on their shoulders. Ellie flinched a little as he did so but just shook it off. "Now that we're all friends, what do ya say we let loose with some pizza and video games?" He suggested.

"I'm up for it!" Casey said, jumping over the couch and was followed by Raph and Mikey. Ellie then quickly glanced at Donnie and Leo before deciding.

"I think I'll pass," She said, smiling. "After I do my warm ups with Leo, Donnie's gonna help me practice with flexibility. He read up just a few days ago just how flexible a cat's body is and I wanna test that!"

With that, the three of them headed for the Dojo. Casey looked at Raph for an explanation and he just shrugged. "Girl likes to fight,"


End file.
